On board the $432.5m luxury version of a Russian icebreaker
French-flagged line Ponant has just released the first of its new-generation hybrid expedition ships, designed to reach the North Pole and parts of Antarctica not usually visited by passenger lines.
Le Havre is a big industrial port on the River Seine estuary, 190 kilometres north-west of Paris. It’s a port better known for tonnage-laden cargo ships than pool deck drinks and luxury cruising.
I’m here to embark Le Commandant Charcot – a new extreme polar exploration ship – and travel for a few days as part of a media and trade show.
